System for generation of power using solar energy

Abstract

An electricity generation system is presented. The electricity generation system includes a solar preheater for preheating compressed discharge air, a combustor to receive the heated compressed air from the solar preheater, burn a fuel using the heated compressed air to generate hot burned gas, a first turbine to receive the hot burned gas from the combustor, expand the hot burned gas to generate exhaust gas, a heat recovery steam generator to receive the exhaust gas from the first turbine, generate vapor by heating a condensed fluid using the exhaust gas, a solar evaporator/superheater to receive a heated working fluid from the heat recovery steam generator, generate solar vapor by heating the heated working fluid, and a second turbine to drive a second generator using vapor and the solar vapor.

1. An electricity generation system, comprising:
 a solar preheater for preheating compressed discharge air using a first portion of a heated solar fluid to generate heated compressed air; 
 a combustor operatively coupled to the solar preheater to generate hot burned gas by burning a fuel using the heated compressed air: 
 a first turbine operatively coupled to the combustor to generate exhaust gas by expanding the hot burned gas: 
 a heat recovery steam generator coupled to the first turbine, the heat recovery steam generator comprising:
 a low pressure evaporator that generates low pressure heated fluid by heating a condensed fluid using the heat of the exhaust gas; 
 an intermediate pressure evaporator and an intermediate pressure boiler that:
 generate intermediate pressure fluid/vapor by heating the low pressure fluid using the exhaust gas and a pump; 
 transfer the intermediate pressure fluid to an auxiliary intermediate pressure boiler/superheater or a solar intermediate pressure evaporator/superheater, or combinations thereof, wherein said solar intermediate pressure evaporator/superheater generates a superheated intermediate pressure solar vapor using a part of a second portion of the heated solar fluid and the intermediate pressure fluid. 
 
 
 
     
     
       2. The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a solar field and receivers to concentrate sunrays and heat a solar fluid to generate the heated solar fluid. 
     
     
       3. The system of  claim 2 , wherein the solar preheater is operationally coupled to the solar field and receivers to receive the first portion of the heated solar fluid. 
     
     
       4. The system of  claim 2 , wherein the solar evaporator/superheater is operationally coupled to the solar field and receivers to receive the second portion of the heated solar fluid. 
     
     
       5. The system of  claim 1 , wherein the solar preheater is operationally associated with a compressor to receive the compressed discharge air from the compressor. 
     
     
       6. The system of  claim 5 , wherein the compressor comprises:
 a low pressure compressor to:
 receive air from an inlet; 
 compress air at a desired pressure level to generate compressed air; 
 
 an intercooler operationally coupled to the low pressure compressor and configured to:
 receive the compressed air from the low pressure compressor, 
 cool the compressed air to generate a cool compressed air; 
 
 a high pressure compressor operationally coupled to the intercooler to:
 receive the cool compressed air from the intercooler; 
 compress the cool compressed air to generate the compressed discharge air. 
 
 
     
     
       7. The system of  claim 1 , wherein the first turbine comprises:
 a high pressure turbine operatively coupled to the combustor to:
 receive the hot burned gas from the combustor; 
 expand the hot burned gas to generate a first expanded gas; 
 
 a reheater operatively coupled to the high pressure turbine to:
 receive the first expanded gas from the high pressure turbine; 
 combust a fuel using the first expanded gas to generate a first heated expanded gas; and 
 
 a low pressure turbine operatively coupled to the high pressure turbine and the reheater, and configured to expand the first heated expanded gas received from the reheater to generate the exhaust gas. 
 
     
     
       8. The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a condenser to generate the condensed fluid. 
     
     
       9. The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a first generator operatively associated with the first turbine to generate electricity. 
     
     
       10. The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a second generator operatively associated with the second turbine to generate electricity. 
     
     
       11. The system of  claim 1 , further comprising a generator operatively associated with the first turbine and the second turbine to generate electricity. 
     
     
       12. The system of  claim 11 , further comprising a shaft coupled to the first turbine, the second turbine and the generator to generate electricity. 
     
     
       13. The system of  claim 1 , wherein the intermediate pressure boiler is coupled to the solar intermediate pressure reheater/superheater via a three way valve, and the high pressure evaporator/superheater is coupled to the solar high pressure evaporator/superheater via another three way valve. 
     
     
       14. The system of  claim 1 , wherein the intermediate pressure evaporator and the intermediate pressure boiler transfer the intermediate pressure fluid to the auxiliary intermediate pressure boiler/superheater or the solar intermediate pressure evaporator/superheater, or combinations thereof based upon an availability of heat from the heated solar fluid and availability of heat in the heat recovery steam generator. 
     
     
       15. The system of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a high pressure evaporator/superheater that:
 generates high pressure vapor using the intermediate pressure fluid and a pump; 
 transfers the high pressure vapor to a solar high pressure reheater/superheater or an auxiliary high pressure superheater; and 
 
 the solar high pressure reheater/superheater that generate superheated high pressure solar vapor using another part of the second portion of the heated solar fluid and the high pressure vapor. 
 
     
     
       16. The system of  claim 15 , wherein the high pressure evaporator/superheater transfers the high pressure vapor to the solar high pressure reheater/superheater or the auxiliary high pressure superheater based upon an availability of heat from the heated solar fluid and availability of heat in the heat recovery steam generator. 
     
     
       17. The system of  claim 15 , further comprising a second turbine configured to drive a second generator using the superheated intermediate pressure solar vapor, the superheated high pressure solar vapor and vapor received from the heat recovery steam generator.